Ryu was silent as the group drifted along the river, the boat being steered only by a lone rower. The river was covered in a fog so thick that one could take a knife and carve into it. Looking over his shoulder, Ryu could see Naruto sitting with a grouchy scowl on his face. The martial artist could understand why the ninja was so antsy, but it was something he would just have to bear with.

"The bridge should be visible soon. When we reach the other side of the bridge, we'll be in the Land of the Waves." The rower told them. This new knowledge caused Naruto to lean forward, staring intently into the fog. Not even a minute later the bridge cut through the fog, standing in the river.

"Wooow! It's huge!" Naruto called out in a very un-ninja like way.

"H-hey! Please keep it down. I took this boat out under cover of fog. I even cut the engine and starting rowing by hand. If they find us, we'll be in deep trouble," the rower quietly called out, causing Naruto to clamp his hands over his mouth. Kakashi shook his head before he addressed the actual client of this mission.

"Tazuna-san. I want to ask you something before we arrive at the pier." The bridge builder didn't answer, instead opting to stare at the boat's floor like it would save his life. "The identity of your assailants, and the reason why they are after you. If you don't tell us... our mission may end when you make landfall." Kakashi spoke with the most serious voice Ryu had ever heard the man speak in.

After a few tense seconds, the builder broke. "It appears I have no choice but to tell you. No… no, I'd like you to listen. Just as you said, this may be beyond the scope of your mission. Actually, I am being targeted by a terrifying man."

"A terrifying man? Who?" Kakashi's tone never changed, but his eyebrow did raise a little.

"You guys have probably heard at least his name before. A shipping magnate by the name of Gato."

"What? Gato... of the Gato Company?" Kakashi's eyes widened, full of surprise, piquing Ryu's interest. "One of the world's richest men?"

Tazuna simply nodded in response. "Yes... On the surface he's the chief executive of a shipping company... but underneath, he's into drug trafficking and deals in contraband using gangs and Ninjas," Hearing that filled Ryu with a sense of nostalgia, which honestly should have worried him. "Moreover, he runs a despicable business, ruthlessly taking over nations and enterprises. It was about one year ago when that man first set his eyes on the Land of the Waves. He used his wealth and violence to enter this country, and before anyone knew it, he had taken complete control of the island's maritime transportation and shipping. Having a tight grip on the ocean in an island nation like the Land of the Waves means having control of finance, the government, the people... everything. The one thing Gato fears is the completion of the bridge that has been under construction for some time now."

Sakura bit her thumb in thought as she processed the information. "I see. Since you're the one building the bridge, you've become a hindrance."

"Then those Ninjas from before were Gato's men?" Sasuke added.

"But I don't understand. Your opponent is a dangerous one who will even use Ninja. Why did you hide that fact from us when you made your request?" Kakashi asked. Surely they would want higher ranked ninjas for such a mission.

"The Land of the Waves is a very poor nation, and even feudal lords have no money. Of course, we ordinary citizens have no money, either. We cannot afford to make requests of Rank B or higher. Well, if you pull out of the mission when I land ashore, I will, no doubt, be killed. Killed sometime before I can make it home," Tazuna explained.

That was a sobering thought to Ryu. There were people in need, but they couldn't get the help they needed because of a lack of money. He supposed it made sense that Tazuna would stoop to such a method.

"But there's no need for concern! Should I die, my cute grandchild who will turn eight will only cry his heart out!" The builder suddenly pulled out the greatest weapon of all, guilt. It had a major effect on Naruto and Sakura, although Sasuke and Kakashi seemed less amused. "And... my daughter will only blame the Hidden Leaf Ninja for the rest of her life and grieve in solitude!" Naruto grunted a bit, although Ryu wasn't sure if it was in annoyance or the guilt getting to him. "Oh, it's not your fault at all!"

All of Team Seven looked at each other, silently coming to an agreement before Kakashi sighed. "Well, I guess we have no choice. Let's continue as his bodyguards."

"Oh! I am most grateful!" Tazuna said with a self satisfied smile, obviously knowing he won.

"We'll be arriving soon." The rower said as the boat floated closer to shore, the fog dissipating as they got closer to said shore.. "Tazuna, it appears we haven't been noticed up until this point." The builder nodded his thanks as they finally reached the dock and the group disembarked. The rower then started his engine and headed back into the river, never to be seen again.

The group began their travels, soon entering a forest. Everyone was on their guard, watching the surrounding area for any sign of an attack. Naruto in particular was attempting to be vigilant, however…

"I sense someone's presence… there!" the orange clad ninja called out, throwing a kunai in a random direction. To the surprise of no one, there was nothing at the location Naruto attacked.

"Don't waste kunai, they're valuable!" Kakashi reprimanded. Naruto, however, continued his mindless attacks, almost skewering a pure white rabbit, one that was both adorable and defenseless.

"Naruto, what have you done?" Sakura raged at the poor stupid boy, who ran over, clutching the rabbit close to his heart.

"I'm sorry!" he wailed. The scene was comical, but something didn't sit right with Ryu. That white rabbit seemed very out of place, but he couldn't quite place the significance of it. Kakashi, on the other hand, instantly realized what was going on.

"Everyone, get down!" Kakashi called out, a loud whistling filling the air. The others instantly dove into the dirt, but Ryu was a bit too preoccupied to immediately dive. However, he did notice the large hunk of metal that was attempting to pass as a sword come spinning at him, and his instincts kicked in. Instead of diving to the ground however, he raised his foot over his head, and brought it down, the axe kick hitting the flat of the blade and forcing it straight into the ground.

The young martial artist was breathing hard, realizing that if he had messed that maneuver even by a fraction of a second, he'd be missing some major body parts. However, he didn't get that much time to ponder this as a man suddenly appeared, standing on the hilt of the sword, back to Ryu.

The man was tall, muscles lining his entire body. His skin was a light gray, and his short spiky hair was as black as Ryu's hair was as an adult. The most noticeable thing about his clothing was that the man was wearing bandages around his mouth like a mask.

"Interesting…," The man muttered before he swiftly spun around, launching a kick at Ryu. The young martial artist barely had time to put up his guard before the kick connected, the force of it throwing Ryu back into his fellow Team Seven members, the four teenagers falling into a pile.

As the group picked themselves up, Kakashi addressed the man. "Well, well, if it isn't the Rogue Ninja of the Hidden Mist, Zabuza Momochi!" Ryu didn't like the sound of a 'rogue ninja', but Naruto seemed undeterred, and he attempted to charge forward, only to be stopped by Kakashi. "You're in the way," Kakashi stated, his voice serious once more. "Get back,"

"Why?!" Naruto called out, making Ryu wonder if the ninja had any sense of self preservation.

"He's on a totally different level then the guys from the other day," Kakashi explained. The implication there worried Ryu. He was called because of 'the guys from the other day', and now Kakashi believed that even he would be in the way. Just how bad of a situation were they in?

"And I believe you are Kakashi, the Sharingan user," The man known as Zabuza replied. Ryu didn't know what a Sharingan was, but apparently the word held meaning to Sasuke, as he reacted to the word being uttered. "Sorry, but I'll have you hand that old man over,"

Kakashi reached for the headband covering his eye, and slowly lifted it up, for the first time revealing what was underneath. His eye had a scar over it, but what stood out the most was that his eye was a bright red, with three black tomoe surrounding his pupil. Naruto had a less than pleasant reaction to the eye, shivering as he looked at it. The man they were facing down seemed amused, and began to explain the significance of the Sharingan.

Honestly, Ryu was surprised that such an eye existed. Not only could it see through illusions, but it also had the power to analyze and copy an opponent's technique. Truly, that seemed formidable. Could… could they copy something like a Shun Goku Satsu? Ryu hoped not, as the less amount of people capable of using that detestable move, the better.

The biggest reveal however, was the fact that their teacher Kakashi apparently made a big name for himself in the ninja world, being known as a ninja that had copied over one thousand techniques. This world was getting more and more interesting by the second!

A sudden fog began to cover the area, causing Ryu to tense up. Where did this fog come from…? He then realized there was a lake not too far from them. Still, that wouldn't make a fog this thick. Was it the power of the enemy ninja?

"Let's end the talking here," Zabuza stated. "I have to kill that old man now," The group went on full alert, and the four teenagers immediately slipped in front of Tazuna, taking a defensive formation. "However… it seems I must defeat you first, Kakashi," The rogue ninja picked up his sword, vanishing in an instant. However, Sakura was able to quickly pinpoint where the ninja went, pointing out something that amazed even Ryu.

"He's standing on the water?!" She cried out. Ryu narrowed his eyes as he watched the enemy taking a pose, hand raised in the air as the water began to swirl around him. What was he doing? Some sort of massive water attack? As it turned out, it was something much worse.

"Ninja Art, Hidden Mist Jutsu," Just like that, he vanished from their sight, the ripples on the surface of the water being the only sign that he was ever there.

"What… what is he?" Sakura muttered.

"Zabuza Momochi. He's an ANBU Black Ops member in the Hidden Mist that specializes in the 'silent killing'," Sakura and the others had some words to say about how calm Kakashi was, but Ryu tuned them out. He instead kept all his senses open, looking for any sign that Zabuza would be drawing near.

Suddenly, to the dismay of the group, Kakashi had vanished into the fog as well. Not only that, but the voice of Zabuza began to echo throughout the area. "Eight spots," His deep husky voice surrounded them, caressing them with a layer of fear and tension. "The larynx, the spine, the lungs, the liver-," Before he could finish, Ryu called out.

"The subclavian and jugular veins, along with the heart and kidneys," Ryu finished. He knew these spots very well. His martial art was one originally designed for assassination, so he knew to avoid those spots for the nonlethal variant he practiced. He took a deep breath after his interruption. He wasn't just interrupting to be rude, he was attempting to calm his teammates' nerves, to show them that this man wasn't some sort of monster for knowing those spots.

"... Ooooh?" Zabuza's voice called back, a hint of amusement in his voice. "It seems someone else has done their homework… then… can you guess which spot I'll strike?" In response, a sudden influx of chakra flared up, blowing away some of the mist. Ryu couldn't sense the chakra, but he could feel the killer intent coming off Kakashi. Sasuke seemed to be overwhelmed by Kakashi's intent, but to Ryu, it was actually reassuring.

It wasn't random bloodlust, but a very strong desire to protect.

"Sasuke," Kakashi's voice called out, catching the group's attention. "Don't worry. I will protect you with my life. I will not allow my comrades to get killed,"

"Oh? I wonder about that," Zabuza's voice suddenly wasn't echoing around them… no, in fact, it was right behind them!

Before anyone could react, Ryu spun around, rearing back his left fist and shoving the uppercut into Zabuza's stomach. The sheer force of the attack sent out a small shockwave that blew away some of the mist, and lifted the rogue ninja into the air.

"Metsu!" Ryu called out, his voice ringing clearly over the pained gargling the rogue ninja let out. He then smashed his right fist into Zabuza's chin with a loud cry of "SHOOOORYUUUKEN!" However, his fist didn't meet any resistance, no, in fact, Ryu shot up into the air, his fist tearing through the ninja, who had turned into water the moment the attack landed. Ryu's eyes widened as he soared into the sky. What was that? It was like a shadow clone but… made of water?

"Interesting, most interesting," Zabuza's voice was once again echoing. "A genin dispatching a water clone that easily? It seems you're going to be a wrench in my plans," Before Ryu could start descending back down to the earth, Zabuza appeared out of the trees, leaping at the defenseless Ryu and grabbing his face with one hand. "Let's get you away from the others then, shall we?"

"Ryu!" The group cried out as Zabuza sailed over their heads, landing on the water and taking off in a full sprint. To make sure the young genin in his grasp wouldn't fight back, Zabuza dunked Ryu's head under the water as he ran. Once the ninja got to a spot he deemed satisfactory, he lifted Ryu and tossed him toward the shore, far away from the others. The genin skipped across the surface like a smooth stone, before crashing back into the water. By the time the martial artist surfaced once again, Zabuza was gone. Coughing, Ryu pulled himself to the shore, the area no longer obscured by the fog.

He had to hurry. He needed to return to the others and help them, before Zabuza could take out Tazuna. He believed in Kakashi, but he wasn't sure about his teammates. However, the moment he sent foot on the land, a fog once again covered the area. Ryu could barely make out what looked like a green haori with white trimmings, and a white mask.

"I don't suppose you'll allow me to just pass?" He questioned. Wordlessly, the figure vanished into the fog. "I didn't think so," Ryu muttered as he took his stance. He had to hurry and take out this unknown enemy before it was too late!

Move List

Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu (Water Clone Jutsu): Using water from the surroundings, the user creates one or more copies of themselves. Unlike the standard Clone Technique, these water clones are physically real, allowing them to interact with others and even perform the same jutsu as the user. However, they only have 10 percent of the user's original power.

Kirigakure no Jutsu (Hidden Mist Jutsu): Users fill the air with mist and control its thickness with their chakra. If the mist is thick enough, it can possibly block out things like the Sharingan.